Perspectives that Inform How I Work
PERSON-IN-ENVIRONMENT/SYSTEMIC
We are all part of living systems: family, peer, social; school and work; local, regional, and global communities. We are affected in each of these systems by social identifiers such as gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, religion, work and ability-status. This holistic perspective considers the interconnectedness of our well-being and functioning in relation to systems and social identifiers.
EMDR
EMDR is an approach to therapy that helps people process and heal from troublesome issues or traumatic experiences. EMDR asserts that the human brain has the capacity to resolve emotional disturbance in a manner similar to what occurs spontaneously during rapid eye movement (dreaming) sleep. With successful EMDR treatment, people still recall troublesome events but they no longer upset, disturb or negatively influence their current lives. EMDR has been endorsed by The American Psychiatric Association and Department of Defense/Department of Veterans Affairs.
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RELATIONAL
The definition of couple and family is inclusive. All families and couples are welcome with regard to sexual orientation, gender identity, culture, ethnicity, age and religion.
Couple and family therapy supports emotional connection and trust, improved communication, and the strengths of the relationship. My approach is eclectic, informed by education and training as a family therapist and models of therapy that include
emotional closeness as primary and vulnerability as a strength. Therapy assists clients in addressing conflict and difference with calmness, access to emotions, and clarity of boundaries and limits. Relational therapy also recognizes the impact of family of origin and how it may be playing out in
the present.
MINDFULNESS
Mindfulness is a secular approach to psychotherapy based on paying moment-to-moment attention. In our fast paced, technologically oriented lives, we are often running on “automatic pilot,” our bodies in one place, our minds in another. Frequently, we are either thinking about the past or future. We are missing many moments of our lives because we are not fully present for them.
In a mindfulness-based approach we learn to pay attention in the present moment so that we are experiencing our life more fully as it unfolds. We practice becoming aware of body sensation, emotion, and seeing thoughts for what they are to bring us into our direct experience. Using mindfulness, we are also better able to respond, rather than react, to people and events in our lives.
SPIRITUALITY
If client has a faith or spiritual orientation, I simply note it as a resource and incorporate it into treatment as appropriate. All faiths, including no faith, are welcome!
